In this dark chaotic world it would be easy to lose hope to lose faith, lose touch, to stop caring so much hate, self righteousness, bigotry There are problems everywhere So much that if you tender your heart it can feel like death Yet there is another way Where instead of focusing on the... Continue Reading →
The Problem is Love?
Is the world burning? Are these the end times? Look at the news Look at social media What has happened? Where are we heading? Murder, rape, slavery Terrorism, prison brakes Pirates, dictators, kingpins Money laundering, tax evasion Political corruption, corporate corruption Capitalism, communism, socialism Fuck-it-all-ism Domestic abuse Rampant prejudice Bullying, pedophilea, ... Continue Reading →
Because You
I choose You Because You chose me I choose love Because You love me I choose submission Because You have set me free I am healed Because You suffered I belong Because You adopted me I have identity Because You named me I thank You Because You are You
Part the Darkness
Close your eyes Place your hands together in front of your chest Picture darkness in front of you The darkness and chaos of this time of year Whatever causes you pain make sure it's in there Stretch your arms out fully Feel the darkness pressing against your arms Now open your arms slowly Part the... Continue Reading →
The Skeptic
Thousands gather to honor the Lord Healing is suggested Then healing is claimed Can it be real? Could it be true? Why do you feel nothing? Is this all a sham A trick to try and make you believe? Really? How arrogant are you, that you could think that this is all about you? ... Continue Reading →
Pure Love
Accepting responsibility It is easy to misunderstand There are many parts of the story Parts I am smart enough not to share here I can paint you the picture of a victim Make it all seem so pitiful I can give you the psychological justifications As they have been revealed to me The... Continue Reading →
Through Grace Alone
It is through grace alone That I am here today, not the sum of regrets For the boy that was and the boy that could have been But the man who is, who is not the man that was Without that grace The man who is, is not And the boy that was is... Continue Reading →
The Council
The council gathers in the royal courts, the splendor of the surroundings beautiful beyond description, more magnificent than you would imagine any hand could make. The muffled whispers are ceased upon the pounding of a gavel, pure silence follows and the proceedings begin. “So Yejshu, tell me of the progress in the 2nd Gamma Nebulous”... Continue Reading →
What Are You Feeding?
I recently read a post from Mel Wild (http://melwild.wordpress.com/2014/08/21/working-from-rest-part-one/ ) on “why we should work from rest, which is simply abiding in Christ when you're busy doing other things”. One of the main things that I got from it was a notion that I felt I had slipped recently from living a life of worship... Continue Reading →
Healing, Your Story & The Journey – The JIBTYI Notes; part 7
The original plan was not to do a chapter by chapter break down of Jesus Is Better Than You Imagined (by Jonathan Merritt), although thus far I kind of have, as such I am going to stop and wrap this thing up today. There are so many great thought provoking pieces in the book from... Continue Reading →
Waiting and Bartering – The JIBTYI Notes; part 6
Hopefully you’ve been reading all week and know what is going on here. If this is your first visit this week, welcome and thank you! I recently read a book, twice, the experience I had reading that book was profound to say the least, the conversations I had with Jesus throughout will stay with me... Continue Reading →
Bullying and Masks – The JIBTYI Notes; part 5
Sometimes something comes along that just rocks your world and removes any question of the status quo that was threatening to creep into your life. Something that prompts you to keep pressing and pushing for a deeper richer experience in life than you have ever had before. Sometimes someone shares a story with you the... Continue Reading →
Getting Mugged and Believing the Impossible – The JIBTYI Notes; part 4
The book “Jesus is Better Than You Imagined” by Jonathan Merritt was quite the read for me. It stirred my mind and soul like none other. I wrote page after page of notes and as I have a blog, the expanded notes are finding their way here in what I am calling the JIBTYI... Continue Reading →
Slow Down – The JIBTYI Notes; part 2
I read a book “Jesus is Better Than You Imagined” by Jonathan Merritt and it made me think, a lot. I had ten pages of notes after the first read, notes that I had no intention of taking when I started to read the book. The JIBTYI notes series is my efforts to process... Continue Reading →
Good Gifts – The JIBTYI Notes; part 1
The JIBTYI notes – part 1 – Good Gifts It’s a funny old thing this Christian life, sometimes when you are muddled about what you are to do; if you are to try and keep pressing, or to try and find a way of balancing a “normal” life with this life of pursuing God that... Continue Reading →
Reading: Jesus is Better Than You Imagined
As I’ve confessed many times on here, I don’t read much; at least I didn’t read much. The reason there is a reading section on my blog is not because I feel I have some literary review talents, but that I need to almost guilt myself into reading more. There is nothing necessarily wrong with... Continue Reading →
Grace
It is through grace alone That I am here today Not the sum of regrets For the boy that was and the boy that could have been But the man who is Who is not the man that was Without that grace The man who is, is not And the boy that was is Thank... Continue Reading →
The Waterfall
There is a river that flows from the throne A river that gives life Making valleys, forging paths It comes to a cliff and drops A beautiful waterfall beyond imagination I approach the waterfall slowly As I cup my hands the water fills them More calmly that the flow should allow I take... Continue Reading →
Not Just Some Bloke
The significance of my place is difficult to understand To some I am everything, to others I do not exist I have learned that measuring yourself by what the world thinks, leads only to emptiness You see, to the world I may well be “just some bloke” However I do not belong to the... Continue Reading →
Reading: Unveiled by Alan Smith
Well look at me I finished another book – woohoo!! Very different from Elmore Leonard’s collection of short stories, Unveiled is a Christian book on “The transforming power of God’s presence and voice”. I actually bought the book about a year ago. The author Alan Smith was a pastor at a large church in a... Continue Reading →
Easter Choir @ CTCC
I figured I should write about this before Easter becomes too much of a distant memory and the post just seems completely random. This past Easter something pretty cool happened at my church, we had an Easter choir. To my knowledge this is the first time there has been a choir there. So being the... Continue Reading →
Happy Easter
On my very best days When I think right, speak right Walk right and act right Still you died for me On my very worst days When I respond in anger When I fall foul of sin Still you died for me When I didn’t even know you When I had run as far as... Continue Reading →
Broken male culture – Part 6 – Identity
Identity, this is a subject I have touched on so many times in different guises over the last year it seems almost redundant to write about it again. Yet in addition to giving you the links to some of my previous entries, I feel there is something specific to broken male culture that needs to... Continue Reading →
Broken male culture – Part 5 – Forgiveness
If knowledge is gained through experience, I should be pretty familiar with the subject of forgiveness. I have had much to be forgiven for in my life time & have also had much to forgive. Some connected, some disconnected but all necessary & all small steps towards what I feel is finally some sort of... Continue Reading →
Broken male culture – part 4 – The causes of brokenness
Brokenness is caused by pain Pain that is not processed Pain that has been buried The pain can be caused by so many things Abuse, neglect, bullying, failures Too many things to name can cause the pain The side effect of brokenness Is coping mechanisms, pain barriers The masks we wear to protect... Continue Reading →